The Ballad of a Broken Nose

Gr 5–7—Twelve-year-old Bart is pretty resigned about his life. He lives in Norwegian public housing with his alcoholic mother and doesn't know anything about his father other than his name, John Jones, and that he is American. At school, Bart tries to maintain a level of invisibility. He has a small circle of acquaintances to talk to at recess, but Ada is the only one who really talks to him, and their conversations are usually centered on Ada copying Bart's math homework. The class talent show is approaching, and Bart lets it slip to Ada that he sings opera, and she in turn lets their classroom teacher know. Imagine his surprise when Ada shows up unannounced at his apartment one day. Bart is horrified that she has had to crunch over needles and avoid junkies just to get to his door. He is also dismayed that she is going to see his mother, who is quite overweight, missing a tooth, and responsible for the state of their apartment. Bart knows that Ada cannot keep a secret, and soon his everyday reality is revealed to his classmates. Bart must work on overcoming his fears, not only about singing but about the state of his life with his mother. The strength of this title is that it will encourage readers to look at their own lives and see the good despite the bad. Unfortunately, there are also some ideas that come across as insensitive or offensive. One of Bart's friends tells him that his mom will not let him listen to rap music, because "she doesn't want me to move to the ghetto and walk around with a gun." When describing his mom, Bart calls her a "beached whale. Superfatso. Very overweight. Back end of a bus." Later, his mother ends up in the hospital, and she is going to have an unnamed operation to make her "better. And thinner." These insensitivities are never circled back to, discussed, or questioned by any of the characters. Most middle grade students will require deeper context and conversation during and after reading to fully digest and comprehend the various layers and themes in this work.